Why do web designers keep going on about the importance of there being plenty of neutral space on your site? Well, for starters, they aren’t being lazy. Whilst it might be your instinct to fill every space of your web pages, having some blank space offers plenty of benefits for your online visitors.

Business owners and web designers often clash over this topic, so we’re going to share the benefits of having white space on your site.

FYI: Just because a web designer is talking about white space, they aren’t always talking about actual ‘white’ space but rather ‘negative space’. These negative areas are empty of images and text.

1. Creates a perfect balance

Having a balance of negative and filled space creates perfect harmony on your website. When you have too many images or content on your page, it can look muddled and difficult to read. Here is an example of our homepage, with clear white space to display our services as clearly as possible.

Looking at a website that has too much going on is distracting. Think about when you’re trying to read a magazine. Too many images and text makes it difficult to concentrate and you’ll likely turn the page. This is the same with a website. This is why you need to create a good balance between space, text and images.

2. It looks professional

White space makes your website look more professional.

Professionally designed websites are planned before going live. Designers plan every aspect and feature of the site to make sure it suits the business and the brand. You can tell when you’ve landed on a site that has been regularly added to over time. They lack space and they are cluttered with images, features and text.

3. Makes it easier to read

White space makes content so much easier to read. That’s why many publishers use white space on their pages. It feels like you’re reading a book.

If you’re bringing plenty of visitors to your site via your blog, the content in your blog posts must be easy to read. Otherwise, readers won’t stay on your site for long. Plain space helps people concentrate and read without distractions.

4. Helps people understand

As white space removes potential distractions and helps the reader concentrate on the text in front of them, it also helps them remember and get a better understanding of the content.

One study found that people who read text with margins found it easier to read and understand what they were reading. Spaces between paragraphs and spreading out the content delivers the information in a digestible format.

5. Improved attention

When you’ve got less distractions, your concentration is vastly improved. Websites that have lots of clutter in their web design can inadvertently distract their online visitors.

Look at Daily Mail’s home page. Yes, this is a news site so it’s meant to be busy with content but this is incredibly distracting.

Having a website that has whitespace in the sidebars can stop readers from getting distracted as they’re reading. If you want your visitors to read your blog and then convert into a lead, you need to limit the distractions.

6. Gives more attention to your CTAs

White space offers more attention to your call-to-actions. Your CTAs play a vital role in your conversion plan and they must stand out. They will struggle to make an impression if they are muddled between lots of content and images.

You should be utilising more white space so it gives you more room to place your CTAs in effective locations. However you must use your CTAs sparingly. Just because you have more space to play with, doesn’t mean you should throw as many CTAs as you can. Put your CTAs on the most relevant pages to improve your chances of higher conversions.

7. Increased conversion

White space increases your conversion rate.

As white space reduces the chance of readers being distracted and gives more attention to your CTAs, visitors are able to better digest the information on your site.

Websites that are full of cluttering information are not a pleasant experience for online visitors. This is why web design is so important. When a person has landed on your site because of a search they made on a search engine, the design of your website is a key reason for keeping them on your site. White space helps them understand your site and avoid making them feel overwhelmed.